This week's update was supposed to be about the frustration of not being able to invest because all of my funds are already accounted for.
However, the markets decided to have a bit of a blip and now I find myself instead thinking about whether to pull the trigger and sell some positions.
It was so bad at one point that Thursday saw me log into my brokerage account TWICE.
Twice!
For years I have been disciplined enough to limit myself to one login per day but I couldn't help sneak a little look on Thursday afternoon as I wanted to see how much paper profit had been "wiped out" in my portfolio.
The FTSE 100 is below its 200 day simple moving average. It is also below its 377 day SMA. Even if I had any money available, I would wait until the price is back above these two SMAs before buying any further shares.
With regards to my existing positions I am showing restraint and keeping them until they give me a reason to sell.
The position of my Lifetime ISA is worse than last week but not disasterous. As always, over the next few weeks I will perform my weekend price and indicator checks before making any decisions. Should they suggest it's time to exit then I will definitely be selling some positions. Following a cull I will hold the cash and wait for future opportunities.
Further investment in UK shares will only be a comfortable proposition for me when the FTSE 100 and also the FTSE 250 are back over their 200 day and 377 day SMAs.
Here's the damage from this week's "ARRGGGHHH, WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!" market over-reaction about the Coronavirus:
| Code | Sector | Date Bought | Cost | Value | Gain/Loss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LM001 LM001-2 |
Equity Investment Instruments | 11/06/2018 16/09/2019 |
£2020 | £2220 | 10.04% |
| LM009 LM009-2 |
Gas, Water & Multiutilities | 05/02/2019 04/02/2020 |
£2020 | £2080 | 2.54% |
| LM012 LM012-2 |
Real Estate Investment Trusts | 20/05/2019 28/11/2019 |
£2030 | £2200 | 8.11% |
| LM014 LM014-2 |
ETF | 17/06/2019 02/12/2019 |
£1950 | £3010 | 53.96% |
| LM015 | ETF | 27/08/2019 | £970 | £940 | (2.32%) |
| LM016 | Travel & Leisure | 29/08/2019 | £1020 | £880 | (13.73%) |
| LM018 | Construction & Materials | 11/11/2019 | £1020 | £980 | (3.53%) |
| LM019 | Travel & Leisure | 11/11/2019 | £1020 | £870 | (14.19%) |
| LM020 | Software & Computer Services | 28/11/2019 | £1010 | £1000 | (0.85%) |
| LM022 | Household Goods | 29/01/2020 | £1020 | £920 | (9.25%) |
Depending on performance next Monday and Tuesday there may be a little bit of a clearout. You can see a couple of positions above which are definitely candidates for expulsion...
There is one position that I will probably cut mid-morning on Monday. The rest will likely survive until the week after as I've yet to get a clear signal to get rid of them.
Dodging a bullet
Last Thursday saw a 16% drop in WPP which reminded me of what I said after selling that particular share:
"Something is obviously not right there so I sold with no hesitation"
I got rid of my WPP shares a couple of weeks ago was because the price had moved below the 50 and 200 day SMAs. That simple decision got me out long before it fell much further on Thursday.
The reason it fell? Something to do with its annual profits falling - can't say I'm particularly interested.
All that matters is that the price had already told me to get out and it saved me from larger losses.
So simple - I just wish it were always that easy.
Let's not pretend it isn't tough seeing so many red figures under the "gain/loss" column but I can console myself with the fact that the LM portfolio is still up 7.31% (on paper) overall. Getting rid of some of those red positions over the next few weeks will mean that figure improves.
Ultimately there is a positive; all this market slowdown means there may soon be cash available in my Lifetime ISA as we wait for the recovery.